In collaboration with the Boston Harbor Island Alliance and Studio Soto, the third annual Bumpkin Island Art Encampment invites proposals to live and work in a temporary artist community in Boston's largest national park area.

Starting Thursday, July 30 and continuing through Monday, August 3, 2009, eight artists/artist groups will each be awarded one plot of prime, arable land in the middle of Boston Harbor.

As "homesteaders" for five days, they will:Build some kind of "home" on the land,Live on the land for five days, andImprove the land via a site-specific temporary project, performance or installation.Artists will:Develop projects that respond to the environment, as defined in the broadest sense. Projects may reflect the island's natural resources and human history (see background below), the cultural context of homesteading, the concept of artist community, or other themes.Use the resources/elements they find on the island. Rocks on the shore, fallen branches, shells, seaweed, washed-up debris, and invasive species are all fair game. As a starting point, artists may only bring the basic tools and supplies they themselves can physically carry on to the land, including everything they need to sleep and survive for five days. Everything found and used on the island must stay on the island at the end of the project. Installations that are not within the tent sites and which are made exclusively of found materials may remain intact.Spend two days developing projects, two days meeting the public, and one day deinstalling and moving off the island. Artists are encouraged to interact with day visitors, other campers, boaters, etc. while creating projects.

Artists will receive:A five day "land grant" with ferry transportation and campsite accessA $100 stipend to cover basic expenses, and a supply of shared drinking waterSupport and critical feedback from project curators and rangers.

About the project

The Nauru Project is an artists' collaboration based around the South Pacific island of Nauru, the world's smallest island-nation. The project involves exchanging and gathering online findings on Nauru, obscure islands, experimental micro-nations, island-related art projects, and the production of artwork among a group of artists and online Nauru enthusiasts. It is run by Maria Georgoula.